Vung Tau Restaurant

I know people get upset about the prices of food when they could have ordered the same dish at a different restaurant but to be fair the establishment themselves usually aren’t as swanky, sometimes you’ll have 30 minute waits and bad parking at other Vietnamese restaurants. So it’s the same dishes at a nicer venue. Vietnamese bathrooms are horrendous and a lot of places are cash only. I don’t think it’s fair to be expecting more for the same price. Some people don’t enjoy sitting at cheap tables with tiled floors and that’s okay. Food is delicious and the people are nice.

Hadn't visited in several years until recently and it's still one of the better Vietnamese traditional family style restaurants in San Jose. Staple dishes are the clay pot catfish (cá kho tộ), sweet and tangy soup with catfish (cảnh chua), shaking beef (bò lúc lắc). Service was busy but sufficient. Booth chairs were awkwardly too soft. Pricier than other more "local" places but it's really good! PS. For those non-Vietnamese that are curious about the restaurant's name, Vũng Tàu is a port city and the capital of Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu Province, on a peninsula in southern Vietnam. Once a French colonial town, it’s now a popular seaside resort that draws many visitors from Ho Chi Minh City, who arrive by hydrofoil. Its long, busy stretch of sandy coast, including Front Beach and Pineapple Beach, has the verdant Small Mountain and Big Mountain as backdrop.

So. Good. Visited on a Saturday for dinner — got there just before 6pm which was probably why there wasn’t a wait. There’s also a small parking lot in the back of the restaurant which is really convenient. Some of my favorites: - beef wrapped onions - grilled pork with steamed vermicelli squares - fried pork & shrimp egg rolls - banh khot I tried the papaya salad this time and while it was refreshing, it was a bit on the sweeter side for me. I love that the orders come with plenty of veggies to eat the meats with. Our waitress was also super helpful in suggesting items to try. Highly recommend and can’t wait to go back again :D

Good food, fair portions (not big or small). Atmosphere is nice and clean. Service is surprisingly good and attentive for a Vietnamese restaurant. Prices aren't cheap at around $20/person for entree and soft drink. They've also got a bar for alcohol-based beverages. Worth it overall, would come back. Would probably give a full five stars if it was a couple bucks less per person.